Democrats Say FEMA Official Who Has Claimed to Be Teleported Is ‘Unfit’ for Role

UNITED STATES, March 26 — FEMA Associate Administrator Gregg Phillips did not appear for scheduled testimony at a House Committee on Homeland Security hearing Wednesday. Former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a news conference at Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, in Washington. Gregg Phillips, head of the Office of Response and Recovery at FEMA, appears on the right. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP

Democrats say that a top official at the Federal Emergency Management Agency with a record of claiming that he has been teleported isn’t qualified for the job. FEMA Associate Administrator Gregg Phillips, an ally of President Donald Trump with a history of being an election denier, was appointed to lead the agency’s Office of Response and Recovery in December. His remarks that he has teleported, including to a Waffle House, his past rhetoric about immigrants and his penchant for remarks promoting violence also drew concern from lawmakers .

Phillips was set to testify in front of the House Committee on Homeland Security on Wednesday at a hearing discussing the effects of the ongoing DHS shutdown. But he was unexpectedly replaced in the lineup by the agency’s external affairs associate, Victoria Barton. “FEMA is on its third unqualified acting administrator in 15 months. And the witness that was scheduled to testify today, Mr. Gregg Phillips, raises serious concerns. He said of President Biden last year, and I quote, ‘I’d like to punch that [expletive] in the mouth right now. He deserves to die,’” Rep. Bennie Thompson, the ranking member of the committee, said at the hearing.

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“That kind of violent rhetoric and wild conspiracy theories are troubling for someone who holds a leadership position at DHS,” he added. Thompson said during the hearing that Phillips was absent due to an “emergency.”

FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to NOTUS’ request for comment on his absence. Democratic Rep. Tim Kennedy described Phillips as “wildly unfit for his role as head of response and recovery” and said that he looks “forward to seeing him here before this committee in person.” “Ms. Barton, I wanted to ask Mr. Phillips, along with my colleagues, about his election conspiracy theories, about his violent statements about former President Biden, or his deeply troubling bigoted comments about immigrants,” Kennedy said. “All of which, to me, makes him wholly disqualified to hold his position on its own. But only to be outdone by his claims of being teleported to a Waffle House.”

FEMA has been in the spotlight during the agency shutdown. Earlier this month, lawmakers on the House and Senate Judiciary committees grilled former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on what they called her mismanagement of FEMA. The pressure culminated with President Donald Trump firing Noem and replacing her with newly confirmed Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, who has promised his leadership style will be a departure from Noem’s.

The shutdown has now surpassed 30 days, but Senate Republicans still face an uncertain road to reaching an agreement with Democrats to end it. During the hearing, Barton told lawmakers that FEMA’s dwindling Disaster Relief Fund is now at $3.6 billion. She added that the agency’s ability to provide some services, such as recovery efforts after storms, is limited because of the shutdown. “With hurricane season approaching, each day of this shutdown increases the risk that a catastrophic disaster could occur while FEMA’s capacity to respond and support recovery is diminished,” Barton said. “This shutdown is imposing far-reaching and serious consequences for FEMA’s operations and the nation’s ability to prepare for and respond to and recover from disasters.”